boom goes the dynamite.

Last Monday while Ben was at work, they were filming a scene for Machete right outside his office window. There was a car crash followed by an explosion. Ben said it was a lot of fun to watch from the upstairs balcony. One of the ladies from the crew came in and talked to them and explained the movie. When it was time for the explosion, she came back and told them to stay inside and away from the windows to avoid any shrapnel. This is a shot of the action. What a fun day at work!

Warning: do not try this at home

A few weeks ago I did a photo shoot with some photographers here. It wasn't the typical bridal shoot - instead, it was a Trash the Dress shoot.
A wedding venue in Dripping Springs called Memory Lane really wanted a bride to jump in their pool. So, instead of a real bride, they got me.
It was a cute place and the owners were so awesome. They even cooked us the best shish kabobs, grilled peaches, guacamole and more. It was great!
We took regular pictures at first out of the water. Then when the sun set, we took the picture of me jumping off the waterfall into the pool. We didn't really know what would happen when I landed in the water - if the dress would just float at first and I wouldn't go under, etc. Well, I didn't float. I went under and when I popped up, the train of the dress was over my head. I was ok treading water, but then the dress started getting heavy and it was harder and harder to stay up. As I was trying to free myself from the train, I heard someone say, "Oh my gosh!" and I thought I was a gonner. Luckily, right after that, I managed to get the train off my head and swim to the side... seconds before needing to be rescued. FYI - it's really hard to swim in a wedding dress. I'm lucky I'm a good swimmer or I would have been screwed.

I jumped off a few more times, but didn't have the problem with the train, because the dress was already wet. That night I had trouble sleeping as I relived that situation in my head... I think as a result of being a lifeguard all those years I have a fear of drowning (but who doesn't?).

Here are a couple shots from 300 we took that night. The photographers are sending me a CD with more images, but here are a few for now. You can tell the dress is big on me, but oh well. At least it allowed me to eat my dinner!
This pic was pre-jump. Notice me rocking my cool black shoes!
By the time this picture was taken I was absolutely freezing.

I'll post more pictures when I get them in a few weeks.

Now Accepting Applications

Ben and I are now accepting applications for friends in or around the Austin area. Applicants are asked to submit a cover letter as well as 3 snap shots. Qualifying applicants should be awesome in general and have a great sense of humor, as well as the ability to handle our sarcastic humor, naughty comments, and disastrous cooking experiments.

Within the next few weeks we are losing from our group:
Danielle and Tanner, to Arizona
Jen and Ryan, to Dallas
Ashley and Michael, to California
Missy and Greg, to Nebraska

Then as if that wasn't enough, we know that within the next 6 or 7 months we will lose Scott and Becca, as well as Jeff and Megan because they will graduate and become really important people. Then in 2010 it will be Jamie and Chris... I guess that's what we get for living in a college town.

We'll miss you guys!

L-A-M-E

The one thing I hate about Austin is all the panhandlers. When we first moved here the number of people out on the corners was shocking. Now I'm a little used to it, but it's still really annoying. Sometimes I drive a certain way just to avoid them.
The worst panhandlers aren't even the homeless people. It's the people out trying to collect money for an organization. They will just walk into traffic at a stop light and knock on your window to get your attention, like you didn't see them in the first place. Then a lot of times they'll give you candy or water for donating. You can always trust candy from a panhandler, right?
Well, today for the 2nd time in my Austin life, I saw the most annoying type of panhandling - The Team Panhandle. This is when a soccer or basketball team wants to go to a tourney out of state and need to raise money. So, instead of doing what normal teams do in normal cities (bakes sales, candy sales, car wash, mow lawns, etc) they stand on the corner with their coaches and panhandle.
Hey, that's a great idea... Lets teach our kids a good work ethic by having them stand outside looking pathetic while getting paid for it! Come on, coaches and parents, get a life!